Seattle City Council District 2 challenger Tammy Morales’ vote totals have pulled close to incumbent Bruce Harrell’s, as results continue to pour in.
As of Monday night, Morales has come within 401 votes of Harrell as the King County continues to count returns. Harrell has 8,520 votes to Morales’ 8,119 votes, or 51.1 percent to 48.7 percent.
Morales was behind about 900 votes, or 10 percent, with the early returns, but she has been heavily favored in later returns — votes turned in at the deadline date and which were mailed in.
The South Seattle Emerald interviewed Morales on the results, as well as local analysts who discussed how Morales nearly doubled her voter take in the primary to be competitive in the race against Harrell.
Other races in Seattle have grown tighter as results are counted. In District 1, which covers West Seattle, Lisa Herbold now trails Shannon Braddock by 95 votes, with less than half a percent separating the two.
On election night, Morales said she expected the later vote counts to favor more left-leaning candidates because progressive voters tend to turn in ballots closer to the deadline. So far the count has followed that trend, including in District 3, where Councilmember Kshama Sawant’s lead over challenger Pamela Banks has grown.
However, Crosscut reported the county now is in the phase of counting the ballots that couldn’t be counted through the tally machines. Reporter David Kroman reported that Morales would need to take 58 percent of the remaining vote in District 2 to overtake Harrell.
There are no mandatory recounts on the local level, according to the county, though either campaign may request one. The results will be certified Nov. 24.
Coverage
South Seattle Emerald: District 2 candidate Morales: Had the media done their jobs, the results of my race wouldn’t come as a shock
